Door for pressurized tank



Nov. 12, 1968 H R. WILCOX DOOR FOR 'RRESSURIZED TANK 5 ShGEt -Sheet Filed Sept. 22, 1966 INVENTOR HAROLD R. WILCOX FIG.

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INVENTOR HAROLD R. WILCOX ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,410,446 DOOR FOR PRESSURIZED TANK Harold R. Wilcox, Maynard, Mass., assignor to Riggs & Lombard, Inc., Lowell, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Sept. 22, 1966, Ser. No. 581,290 6 Claims. (Cl. 220-25) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A door is provided for use particularly with pressurized tanks. The door is mounted on the inside of the tank and adapted to span an opening formed through the tank wall. The door is pivoted on the end of arm within the tank and the arm is drivingly connected to a power mechanism which rotates the arm from one position to the other. The edge of the door engages a fixed guide extending inwardly and to the side of the opening. The door is opened by first relieving the pressure in the tank and then operating the arm so that the door first swings inwardly and then swings and tilts away from the opening to provide clear access through the opening.

This invention relates generally to door closing systems for pressurized tanks and the like and more particularly is directed towards a new and improved pressure tight door mounted to the pressure side of a tank wall and movable into open and closed positions by a guiding mechanism which carries the door along a tilting path clear of adjacent internal obstructions. The door is sealed in a closed position by means of tank pressure only.

Pressurized tanks are utilized in a great many industrial applications. For example, in the textile industry dye becks are employed to dye fabrics in a heated and pressurized atmosphere. A typical dye beck consists of an elliptical reel which lifts the fabric in an endless loop form from the dye bath and pleats it back into the bath repeatedly until dyeing is complete.

It has been found that the dyeing process may be accelerated and improved by carrying it out under pressure and for this reason dye books are usually closed vessels and pressurized typically on the order of to p.s.i., for example. Such dye becks are equipped with one or more access ports for feeding in fresh sections of the cloth and withdrawing dyed materials. Heretofore, doors covering the ports have been hinged to the outside of the pressure vessel and are usually secured in a closed positions by means of a series of manually operated dogs spaced about the port. While dogs have been employed for years to close pressurized tanks they are not entirely satisfactory insofar as the dogs must be operated individually and this involves some delay and eifort. While locking arrangements have been developed in which a single lever or wheel is connected to the dogs through link arms for simultaneous operation of all the dogs, this also is not entirely satisfactory because of the mechanical complexity of the linkage and because the pressure applied to the door by the dogs may not be uniform all about the door.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide improvements in doors for pressurized tanks and the like.

Another object of this invention is to provide a door mounting arrangement for pressurized tanks and the like in which the door is self-sealing when in a closed position.

A further object of this invention is to provide a door mounting mechanism for a pressurized tank in which the door is movable into and out of a closed position along a path which clears the door of mechanism located in close relation to the door opening.

More particularly this invention features a door closing system for pressurized tanks and the like, comprising a door mounted within the tank and dimensioned to cover the hatch opening when in a closed position. The marginal edges of the door are adapted to seat against a gasket disposed about the margins of the hatch, opening whereby, when the door is in a closed position, the internal buildup of pressure within the tank will seal the door without additional sealing mechanism. The door is mounted with the lower edge thereof riding in a channel tilted back from the hatch and the mid-portion is pivoted to'an arm which in turn is actuated by a power mechanism whereby the door is opened by swinging the arm to carry the door in a tilting, swinging movement through a path clear of internal tank mechanism located opposite the hatch opening.

However, these and-other features of the invention, along with further objects and advantages thereof, will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, with reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a dye beck having a door closing system made according to the invention,

FIG. 2 is a detailed sectional view in side elevation of the door closing system, and

FIG. 3 is a view in front elevation thereof.

Referring now to the drawings, the reference 10 generally indicates a pressure tank such as a dye beck. Typically the dye beck is a relatively large upright structure perhaps 12 feet or so in height of steel construction adapted to be operated under an internal pressure on the order of 5 to 10 p.s.i., for example, and temperatures in excess of 212 F. Typically, the dye beck includes a hatch opening 12 in the top portion thereof for access to the interior of the tank. A doifer roll 14 may be mounted above the hatch opening by a bracket 16 for use in guiding cloth into and out of the tank through the hatch opening. Usually tanks of this type are provided with a large rotating cylinder 18 mounted within the tank near the top thereof for carrying cloth in belt form continuously in and out of a dye bath, for example, in the lower portion of the tank. In order to keep the size of the tank to a minimum, the cylinder 18 is usually mounted in closely spaced relation opposite the hatch opening 12 and for this reason a conventional door cannot be hinged to the interior of the tank since there would be 'insufficient room for the door to swing clear of the various cylinders and rollers within the tank. As shown, the cylinder is driven by a motor 15 mounted on the side of the tank and operating a pulley and belt 17 connecting the cylinder. A compressor 19 is also provided for pressurizing the tank.

According to the present invention, a door 20 is mounted within the tank 10 for closing the hatch opening 12 from the inside rather than from the outside as is customarily done. The door 20 typically is of rectangular construction conforming in configuration to the outline of the hatch opening 12 but of slightly greater dimensions so that the edges thereof will span the inner margins of the hatch opening. In practice, the tank 10 is formed with a channel 22 which extends about the hatch opening 12 and carries a resilient gasket 24 of a heat-resistant material such as neoprene or the like. The door 20 is formed with a marginal lip 26 the edges of which are adapted to seat against the gasket 24 when the door is in a closed position. In practice, the door may be formed with a transparent port 28 so that the operator may view the interior of the tank during operation.

The door 20 is provided at its lower end with a pair of rollers 30 mounted on the inner face thereof, one on each side. Each roller is mounted on a bracket 32 secured to the door and each roller rides in a guide 34 in the form of a track or channel mounted in a generally upright position one on either side of the hatch opening. Each guide is formed with a relatively short horizontal section 36 at the lower end thereof for guiding the door roller and the door at its lowermost position into alignment with the gasket 24. The horizontal section extends inwardly a short distance so as to permit the door to be retracted with the lip 26 clear of the channel 22 and gasket 24 before being moved clear of the hatch opening as will presently appear. The remaining portion of the guide is a straight section extending somewhat above the top of the hatch opening. This straight section typically is tilted back from the hatch about from the vertical.

Mounted in bearings and 37 above the door 20 is a rotatable shaft 38 extending horizontally above the hatch opening within the tank and with one end thereof extending out through the side wall of the tank. The shaft 38 carries a pair of depending arms 40 and 42 one on either side of the door generally between the side edges of the door and the guides 34. The two arms 40 and 42 are H keyed to the shaft 38 and pivotally engage the center portion of the door by means of pins 44 extending through the lower end of the arms and through bearing blocks 46 secured to the rear face of the door. Keyed to the exterior end of the shaft 38 is a crank-arm 48 which is drivingly connected to the end of a piston rod 50 for a power cylinder 52 which may be actuated by air or hydraulic fluid. The power cylinder 52 is pivotally connected at its upper end by a hinge 54 secured to the outer side wall of th tank 10.

The door operates in the following fashion. Assuming the door is in the closed position as shown in full line in FIG. 2 any internal pressure in the tank is first relieved and the power cylinder 52 is actuated, usually from a remote control station. Actuation of the cylinder 52 extends the rod 50 to the right as viewed in FIG. 2, rotating the crank arm 58, the shaft 38 and both arms 40 and 42 clockwise about the shaft axis. This movement first pulls the door 20 to the left along the horizontal guide section 36 until the door edges clear the hatch channel 22 and gasket 24. With the door clear of the frame and the arms 40 still moving clockwise the door is tilted counterclockwise about the axis of the rollers 30 and the lower end of the door is guided up along the straight section of the guides 34. The door is thus carried upwardly and to the left, pivoting about two moving axes namely, the axes of the pins 44 at the end of the arms 40 and 42 and the axes of the rollers 30 moving along the inclined guides 34. The door is thus tilted first backward to the left and is carried upwardly and further tilted until the door is substantially parallel to the length of the cylinder 52 when in a fully raised and opened position. In this condition the door is completely clear of the hatch opening and in its path carries it clear of the mechanism such as the cylinder within the tank. The hatch opening is thus completely clear for feeding and removing cloth or the like without obstruction.

The door is closed by merely reversing the operation of the power cylinder to retract the rod 50. This rotates the crank arm 48 counterclockwise which in turn rotates the arms 40 and 42 counterclockwise to carry the door downwardly and tilting it forwardly as it is moved. The door gradually erects itself into a vertical position for closing and, when in a fully erected position with the rollers 30 at the bottom of the guides, the door moves in against the gasket 24, seating itself in position. No other locking or closing mechanism is required to seal the door even though the tank may be pressurized. It will be understood that insofar as the door is mounted on the inside of the tank any pressure built up within the tank will increase the sealing action of the door against the gasket.

The door thus has the advantage of simplicity of construction and is self-locking under the action of internal pressure. The internal mounting of the door provides a safety feature in that the door cannot be blown loose nor can it be opened accidentally until the tank pressure is first relieved.

Having thus described the invention, What I claim and desire to obtain by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A door closure system for pressurized tanks and the like, comprising:

(a) a door mounted on the pressure side of said tank for movement into and out of a closed position over an opening formed through a wall of said tank,

(b) a guide mounted within said tank extending along one side of said opening and at an angle with respect to said wall,

(c) a follower pivotally mounted to one edge of said door and engaging said guide for movement therealong, said follower permitting said door to be pivoted about a first axis perpendicular to said guide upon displacement of said door,

(d) an arm pivotally mounted within said tank about a second axis extending adjacent said opening opposite said one edge in spaced parallel relation to said first axis,

(e) the outer end of said arm pivotally engaging the mid-portion of said door for pivoting movement about a third axis in spaced parallel relation to said first and second axes, and

(f) means for pivoting said arm about said second axis to thereby carry said door in a tilting swinging movement from said opening,

(g) said pivoting means including a powe cylinder one end of which is pivotally mounted to said tank and the opposite end is drivingly connected to said arm.

2. A door closure system according to claim 1 including a crank arm fixed to said shaft and said opposite end of said cylinder is connected thereto.

3. A door closure system for a wall opening, comprising:

(a) a door mounted for movement into and out of a closed position over said opening,

(b) a guide mounted to said wall extending along on side thereof and at an acute angle with respect to said wall,

(c) a follower pivotally mounted to one edge of said door and engaging said guide for movement therealong, said follower permitting said door to be pivoted about a first axis perpendicular to said guide,

(d) an arm pivotally mounted to said wall about a second axis extending adjacent said opening opposite said one edge in spaced parallel relation to said first axis,

(e) the outer end of said arm pivotally engaging the mid-portion of said door for pivoting movement about a third axis in spaced parallel relation to said first and second axes, and

(f) means for pivoting said arm about said second axis to thereby carry said door in a tilting swinging movement from said opening.

4. A door closure system according to claim 3 wherein said guide is a channel member and said follower is a roller.

5. A door closure system according to claim 4 wherein said channel member is formed with an end portion extending towards said wall.

6. A door closure system for pressurized tanks and the like, comprising:

(a) a door mounted on the pressure side of said tank for movement into and out of a closed position over and opening formed through a wall of said tank,

(b) a guide mounted within said tank extending along one side of said opening and at an angle with respect to said wall,

(c) a follower pivotally mounted to one edge of said door and engaging said guide for movement therealong, said follower permitting said door to be pivoted about a first axis perpendicular to said guide upon displacement of said door,

(d) an arm pivotally mounted within said tank about a second axis extending adjacent said opening opposite said one edge in spaced parallel relation to said first axis,

(e) the outer end of said arm pivotally engaging the mid-portion of said door for pivoting movement about a third axis in spaced parallel relation to said first and second axes, and

(f) means for pivoting said arm about said second axis to thereby carry said door in a tilting swinging movement from said opening,

(g) said guide being formed with a straight portion at the end thereof extending perpendicularly of said door inwards of said tank whereby the door will first be displaced inwardly upon pivoting of said arm.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,966,999 1/1961 Swanson 220--25 10 JAMES B. MARBERT, Primary Examiner. 

